Apparent digestibility of wheat and coproducts in extruded diets for the Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus

SUMMARY In the present study, we investigated the digestibility of wheat and its coproducts in extruded diets for juvenile Nile tilapia. Specifically, we evaluated the apparent digestibility coefficients (ADCs) of dry matter (ADCDM), gross energy (ADCGE), crude protein (ADCCP), essential amino acids (EAAs), and non-essential amino acids (NEAAs) in winter wheat, spring wheat, wheat middling, wheat bran, and wheat germ in a diet fed Nile tilapia. A reference diet and test diets were used, with 5.0g/kg chromic oxide (Cr2O3) as the external indicator. The ADCDM, ADCCP, and ADCGE were higher (P 80%, except for threonine in wheat middling and wheat bran, exceeding 90% for winter wheat and wheat germ. The values of all investigated ingredients were high for ADCCP, and the ADCs of EAAs and NEAAs. A strong negative correlation was detected for crude fiber and ash with the ADCs of dry matter, gross energy, and crude protein. In general, wheat ingredients have good digestibility of protein and amino acids, but high fiber content reduces CDAMS and CDAEB in extruded diets for Nile tilapia.